Research investments in global infectious diseases - a systematic analysis of the UK research portfolio

This thesis considers investments in infectious disease research awarded to UK institutions between 1997 and 2010. It considers awards by pathogen and disease area, and by the type of science along the R&D pipeline (from pre-clinical and basic science, through clinical trials and product development and into operational and implementation research). It also compares level of investment with the global burden of disease, to identify areas of research strength and funding neglect.
The chapters include- analyses of the relative expenditure compared to global disability-adjusted life years (DALYs); descriptions of, and discussions on, mycology infectious disease and the limited range of research taking place in that area; descriptions of investments in antimicrobial resistance, one original research paper describing the research spend across several pathogens and disease areas, and a comment piece briefly outlining some personal views about ways forward, particularly from a global and governance perspective; descriptions of healthcare-associated infections research, which showed significant increases in research funding from around the turn of the century; descriptions of respiratory infectious disease and analyses comparing to the global burdens of disease; descriptions of viral hepatology and analyses comparing to the global burden of disease; concept of measuring research investments against published outputs to identify which diseases and types of science are particularly productive; critical reflections on the portfolio of manuscripts, discussions of the limitations of these approaches, and suggestions for future decision-making by policymakers, funders and global health researchers.